Columns: Race Course Road

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India Today, May 24, 1999
May 24, 1999

RACE COURSE ROAD
Setting the Agenda

That's Vajpayee's best bet to win a race.

By Prabhu Chawla

Here's the buzz: the nation wants to elect Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the prime minister but not the BJP. Indians want to put the Congress back in power but hate the idea of Sonia Gandhi becoming the prime minister. Therein lies a major challenge for Vajpayee. Almost all the recent opinion polls have rated him the most popular choice as the chief executive.

The prime minister is now confronted with the daunting task of retaining his No. 1 position for the next 120 days till the last ballot to elect 542 MPs is cast. Vajpayee is least worried about his enemies. He knows them. What bothers him are his friends in the Sangh Parivar and some of the allied parties. If not reigned in, they can turn out to be unguided missiles which have the potential to destroy Vajpayee's acceptability factor. An unprovoked attack on the minorities or a provocative statement against the weaker sections by any of the upper-caste leaders of the ruling alliance may hugely mar the winning chances of the prime minister.

For the past 14 months, Vajpayee has projected himself as a leader striving to minimise social tensions and lower political temperatures. With over 40 parties represented in the dissolved Lok Sabha, the emergence of a coalition culture has led to ominous confrontation, making it impossible for political enemies to even co-exist as social friends.

Part of the blame lies with the Sangh Parivar which failed to understand the coalition culture. By instigating attacks on the minorities, it pushed the BJP led government on the defensive. What worries Vajpayee is the revival of such frenzy as the election fever picks up. Realising this, the prime minister has appointed a task force comprising Home Minister L.K. Advani, External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, Defence Minister George Fernandes and Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra to monitor various political, social and administrative developments and take remedial measures. The task force meets at least twice a week at the prime minister's residence where important matters including bureaucratic appointments are discussed.

Vajpayee is also laying emphasis on the implementation of the 1999-2000 budget. Recently he summoned all the ministers holding economic portfolios to his residence and directed them to chalk out detailed plans for their ministries. Fortunately, the opposition cannot raise a din over such decisions since the budget was passed by both Houses without any changes. In fact, it is the first time in history that the government, despite being voted out, secured parliamentary endorsement for its economic policies.

In electoral politics, the one who dictates the agenda wins the race. Vajpayee has chosen to do precisely that. He has decided to take important decisions for the next four months. These include public-sector disinvestment, sops for the poor as provided in the budget and major initiatives on international relations, including the CTBT. The objective is to trap the opposition into creating a furore over whatever he does. It would also provide him with an election plank that his detractors are determined to destroy a government rather than make one. On top of this his opponents neither want an early election nor will they allow him to govern effectively, leaving the country in a long spell of uncertainty. This idea is implicit in everything Vajpayee is trying to do to return to power. He seems to be winning. For now.

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